ABI Research forecasts that approximately 90 % of 5G cell sites in emerging markets will be operating support a combination of sub-6 GHz bands by 2026. 5G handsets shipments, in emerging markets, supporting the sub-6 GHz band is expected to grow to nearly 600 million by 2026 at a CAGR of 22.7 % from 2020.
Aside from industry momentum, sub-6 GHz bands are crucial in supporting key applications such as the Internet of Things (IoT) as well as Fixed Wireless Access (FWA). These applications which require robust propagation characteristics and sufficient capacity capability which can be provided by the sub-6 GHz bands. In emerging markets where consumers likely to have higher price sensitivity, the majority of the FWA demand will be driven by LTE. This will be especially true for countries with larger population living in the rural areas or with challenging geographical environment for fixed network deployments.
